This invention relates generally to medical accessories and more particularly to an apparatus for securing a catheter or other tube-like member to a limb or trunk body portion of a human.
My U.S. Pat. No. 5,352,209 entitled Band For Anchoring A Tubular Device to the Body is herein incorporated by reference.
There are many instances in which it is desirable to retain or hold a tube-like member in generally fixed position relative to a limb, such as an arm or leg of a human. The most obvious need arises in hospitals or other patient care facilities. However, any number of situations exist wherein it is necessary or preferable for an elongate member such as for example a rod, cord or tube to be maintained in a fixed or secure position relative to the body so as not to become caught or snagged during movement or activity, or so as not to slip into a position wherein the tube could be bent or crimped or otherwise damaged.
Examples of such applications might include patient-care catheter tubes or intravenous tubes. Such tubes must be positioned so as not to be bent, pinched, crushed, snagged or pulled by movement of the patient or by those administering to the patient.
A number of techniques and apparatus have been used in the past to address the problem. The tube can be directly taped to the patient. However, such taping is not particularly comfortable to the patient and does not lend itself for a lead to replacement or servicing of the tube. Besides, the tape can leave undesirable residue on the tube and on the patient""s body. Taping can also cause allergic skin reaction, pain upon removal, tape burn and/or hair loss.
A commonly used non-tape retainer has been an adjustable strap member configured for attachment to the leg or arm of the patient, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,096,863. The retaining band of such structure includes a rigid metal clip or buckle through which a secondary strip of material passes, to form a loop that can be retainably tightened around a catheter tube or the like, for holding the tube in position against the band. Such structure provides improved flexibility for use with patients of varied size limbs and for use with tubes of varied outer circumferences. However, the rigid clip or buckle of such device adds to the cost of the device, and permits slippage of the tube relative to the strap if not tightened enough, or undesirable bending and restriction of the tube, if tightened too much. Further, the presence of the rigid metal clip can cause discomfort to the wearer and can be difficult to secure since the tube retaining tab must be threaded through the clip or buckle in order to secure the tube.
An improved retaining strap that solves the above problems is disclosed in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,352,209. That strap eliminated the metal clip or buckle of the prior art, which made it easier to manufacture, less expensive, easier to use, more comfortable to the patient and minimized the potential of damage to or bending or crimping of the tube being held thereby.
The retaining straps of the prior art, however, all generally suffer from a common shortcoming. They have a tendency when operatively positioned at a comfortable tension on a limb, such as on an arm or leg of a patient, to slip or slide relative to the limb as the patient moves or as a result of pressure being applied to the strap or to the tube being retained thereby. Such strap movement relative to the limb can result in tugging or pulling on the retained tube, causing discomfort or injury to the patient. One solution to such slippage may be to tighten the straps to the limb with such force that it would not slip. However, such tension might be so high as to cause discomfort to the patient or constriction in the patient""s limb. Another problem associated with some of the prior art retaining devices is that they have used materials such as latex in their construction, which could cause allergic reactions to patients and users of the straps.
The present invention addresses these shortcomings of prior art retaining devices and generally provides an improvement over such prior art devices while maintaining the advantages provided by my prior patented retaining strap. This invention provides a retaining strap resists sliding movement or slippage relative to the patient""s body once operatively positioned on the body, and which is preferably constructed of non-allergenic materials. The device requires less tension and tightening of the strap on the limb which minimizes constriction, resulting in improved blood circulation and increased patient comfort.
This invention provides a very user friendly and efficient retainer strap or band for holding an elongate member such as a tubular device in place relative to a limb or body member of a patient, which is also very comfortable to the patient. The present invention uses no buckles for providing the retaining function and does require the retaining member to be passed or inserted through any holes or slots in the band or strap structure in order to accomplish the retaining function. The tube retaining or holding mechanism is carried by a primary band or strap that incorporates and infinitely adjustable hook and loop fastener technique which permits the primary band to be sized upon application to the patient, to the unique size and shape of the body member to which it is being applied. The primary support band includes an elastic portion which enables the band to be secured at the proper tension, as dictated by the patient to which it is being secured. Such tension is enough to hold the band in place on the limb, but which is also comfortable to the patient and which doesn""t adversely constrict blood flow through the limb. The primary support band includes a slip-resistant inner surface for contacting the wearer""s skin that minimizes slippage or sliding of the support band once placed in operative position relative to the wearer""s body. Once the primary support band has been properly positioned on the limb or body member of the patient, the tube member to be secured is simply seated upon a frictional material of the tube retainer portion and is rapidly secured thereto by simple one-motion step which stretches the tube retaining material while placing it in secure engagement with the tube. The tube retaining strap portion is firmly retained in engagement with the tube by means of a hook and loop fastener tab that is sized for ease of handling by the attendant and for facilitating stretching of the retained material. The entire retainer strap is preferably constructed of non-allergenic materials that are safe for use by the wearer and/or those handling the retaining strap.
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided an appliance for retaining an elongate member such as a catheter to a body portion of a person, comprising:
(a) a primary strap member configured to encircle the body portion to which a said elongate member is to be retained, said primary strap member having oppositely disposed outer and inner surfaces;
(b) a fastener system for releasably securing said primary strap member around and into snug engagement with said body portion; wherein said inner surface of said primary strap member cooperatively addresses said body portion;
(c) a slip-resistant material forming at least a portion of said inner strap surface and configured to engage said body portion; and
(d) a secondary member secured to said primary strap member, configured to releasably secure an elongate object to said primary strap member.
According to a further aspect of the invention, the fastener system may comprise a hook and loop fastening system. According to yet another aspect of the invention, at least those portions of the appliance designed to contact the body portion comprise non-allergenic materials, and preferably contain no latex. According to yet a further aspect of the invention, the slip-resistant materials are configured to form an open pattern along the inner surface of the primary strap member to enable the passage of air or breathing through the primary strap material. According to one aspect of the invention, such slip-resistant material comprises silicone which can be configured to stretch with the primary strap member.
According to yet a further aspect of the invention, there is provided an appliance for releasably securing a tube-like member along a limb, comprising:
(a) a primary strap member configured to encircle the limb, said primary member being at least partially stretchable in a longitudinal direction and having at least a partially slip-resistant first surface;
(b) a first fastening system for securing said primary strap member in encircling manner about said limb, with said first surface engaging said limb;
(c) a second fastening system for releasably securing a tube-like member to said primary strap member; and
(d) said slip-resistant first surface being arranged and configured to inhibit relative sliding motion between said primary strap member and said limb.
While the invention will be described with respect to its application for holding a catheter strap, the invention is not limited to such application. Further, while the invention will be described with respect to specific types of materials and with respect to particular sizes of the various components of the preferred embodiment, it will be understood that the invention is not to be sole limited to the described materials or to their preferred embodiment sizes. The invention will also be described with respect to particular preferred embodiments thereof, which illustrate the use of various slip-retardant materials and patterned configurations of such materials on the primary band member. It will be understood by those skilled in the art, that the invention is not to be limited by the particular types of slip-retardant materials described or to the particular patterns or configurations in which they are presented with respect to the preferred embodiments disclosed. These and other features of the invention and modifications thereof will become obvious to those skilled in the art in view of a more detailed description thereof.